Angela Amato, The Canadian Press Published Wednesday, August 24, 2022 5:30 a.m. EDT Last updated Wednesday, August 24, 2022 5:30 a.m. EDT
Universities requiring masks on campus are in the minority as the fall semester and the prospect of a new wave of COVID-19 infections loom.
Despite the removal of provincial and territorial requirements to wear masks, some colleges have decided to keep them for the safety of staff and students.
“Right now, I think there’s still a risk of waves of serious illness, and caution makes sense to me,” said Dr. Linora Saxinger, an infectious disease specialist at the University of Alberta, where masking is encouraged but not required, in most settings.
Fourteen of 83 universities surveyed by The Canadian Press via email, interviews and online notices said they would require students and staff to wear masks in various settings on campus.
Western University in London, Ontario, and its affiliated school, Huron University College, were the only ones surveyed to have vaccine mandates.
“While we cannot predict when the next wave of COVID-19 may come, we believe these measures will help us protect the personal experience Western is known for,” Western Provost Florentin Strzelczyk said in a statement released to university website.
At Dalhousie University in Halifax, masks are required in classrooms and study areas. They are voluntary in all other indoor spaces such as corridors, libraries and classrooms. Dalhousie has no vaccine requirement.
The Dalhousie Students’ Union was not part of the decision-making but fully supports the mandate, spokeswoman Janet Bryson said. The Student Union building is not a place of study, so masking is not required there.
“Masks have always been recommended and we will continue to recommend wearing masks in our spaces,” Bryson wrote in an email.
Ryan Simmons, a music student at MacEwan University in Edmonton, said he would prefer a vaccine mandate to a mask mandate.
“It’s a higher education place, so I hope most people at school are smart enough to get booster shots,” said Simmons, whose COVID-19 vaccinations are up to date.
Simmons said universities should send notices to students encouraging them to get their boosters. As for the mask requirements, Simmons said, “I’m totally fine with whatever. As long as I can be in school, I’m a happy guy.”
MacEwan University announced that it will continue to promote vaccinations and masks, but will not make either mandatory for the fall semester.
Cleome Wilkinson, a geography student at the University of Victoria, said she would continue to wear a mask in September. The University of Victoria has no mask or vaccine mandate in place for the 2022 autumn term.
“The disability community has been quite vocal about masking in close contact and enclosed spaces as something that makes their lives easier and more comfortable,” Wilkinson said. “It’s something that’s important to me.”
The University of Manitoba is maintaining its indoor mask mandate until further notice.
Dr. Mark Torchia, head of an academic team at the University of Manitoba, said mask mandates are more effective than vaccinations against the Omicron variant. As cases of COVID-19 rise in Manitoba, Torchia said it makes sense for the school of about 40,000 staff, faculty and students to require masks.
Of the student response, Torchia said, “I’ve heard from both sides, but mostly positive.”
Julie Lajoie, a research associate at the University of Manitoba, said she is relieved the university is maintaining its mask mandate.
“The University of Manitoba really follows science.”
The University of Alberta said in a statement that “high-quality masks remain encouraged on U of A campuses in high-traffic or high-capacity indoor areas or when accessing public or shared transportation. In some specific cases, masks will be required, such as clinical settings with Alberta Health Services masking requirements.
Student Union President Abner Monteiro said his group was not involved in the decision-making.
“Overall, students have not signaled one way or the other that they need a mask mandate to feel comfortable on campus,” he said.
“What we want to see and ensure in the student union is that we have a preventative, proactive and planned approach from the university so that students have predictability first and foremost this year.”
Universities that offer medical training still have policies on masks in clinical settings, as recommended by public health officials.
This report from The Canadian Press was first published on August 24, 2022.
— With files from Steve Lambert in Winnipeg and Jordan Omstead in Toronto
This story was produced with the financial assistance of Meta and the Canadian Press News Fellowship.
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